"Senior's praise is excessive." Lei Dong lowered his head, stating with a touch of indifference, "At my current stage, I am merely at the initial phase of Foundation Establishment. My only hope right now is to advance to the middle phase. As for Golden Core or Nascent Soul, those realms are far too distant and unattainable for me."

"Good, very good. For someone your age to possess such a grounded awareness is truly rare. I believe it must be the hardships of your past experiences that have benefited you immensely." The golden puppet expressed even greater admiration and praise: "You come from humble beginnings, suffering countless hardships and tasting the full bitterness of life since childhood. Despite this precarious path, your cultivation is slightly inferior to ChuChu's and that Zhao Wu boy's. However, this very background is truly your greatest asset. Once you have ample resources supplied to you, I believe you will soar to the heavens, achieving fame that shakes the world." Evidently, as a Supreme Elder, he had reviewed intelligence reports concerning Lei Dong's disguise and was not entirely uninformed about him.

Lei Dong himself was a man seasoned by the world, utterly cunning. Naturally, he understood that there was no such thing as a free lunch, and this enticing speech from the golden puppet Elder Li must have an ulterior motive; he would never benefit without a cost. Thus, he patiently waited to hear the rest of the pronouncement.

As expected, the puppet continued, "There are now two paths before you. The first is to completely sever ties with ChuChu. From this day forward, you will remain an ordinary Core Disciple. ChuChu, however, will be cultivated as my main lineage successor. On this path, I do not worry about any development between you and ChuChu, because the gap between you will widen until it becomes impossible to sustain."

Lei Dong remained silent, listening diligently.

Seeing how composed he was, the golden puppet’s appreciation grew, and he uttered two more words of approval: "Then, I shall let you hear the second path. That is, you marry into my Li family, becoming ChuChu's true husband, an honored guest of the Li family. From now on, you will enjoy the immense resources that my Li family, including myself, have prepared for you, allowing you to advance to higher realms without any obstacles."

"Great-Grandfather." Li ChuChu’s face suddenly flushed crimson, and she couldn't help but let out a delicate, petulant sound. Although her previous act had been quite convincing, at that time, her entire focus was on helping this man she felt a strong affection for and pitied. Most importantly, even in that critical moment, he had refused to silence her to protect himself, preferring to risk enormous danger, possibly even death. For all these reasons, she had resolutely decided to help him survive. To ensure his survival, natural shyness and embarrassment were temporarily set aside. Now, the matter was being brought up so concretely, and Li ChuChu, having no prior experience in such matters, naturally felt immensely shy. Despite feeling danger and instability from the mysterious and powerful 'Gongsun Dong' and the unique temperament and sinister charm he exuded, she had to admit that this genuine 'Gongsun Dong' was far more attractive and captivating to her than the pretense he had maintained earlier.

However, even if Li ChuChu racked her brain, she could never have guessed Lei Dong's true cultivation and age. Outwardly appearing young and handsome, he was in reality an ancient monster at the Nascent Soul level, second only to her Great-Grandfather in seniority. In terms of actual combat strength, the arrogant Elder Zhao who had appeared earlier would certainly not be Lei Dong’s match if he couldn't deploy his Divine Transformation-level puppet.

"Hmph, you were the one who took a liking to him, so why are you shy now? When you were fighting over him and throwing tantrums in public just moments ago, why didn't you feel any shame?" The golden puppet snorted coldly. "I thought you inherited your Great-Grandfather's straightforwardness—if you like something, you ignore all worldly trifles. Who knew you still had the mentality of a little girl? We are all cultivators pursuing the Great Dao; if you like someone, you like them. Why be coy like some sheltered young mistress from a mundane family? I’ll tell you frankly, when I first saw the intelligence report on young Master Gongsun, your Great-Grandfather truly had this idea, but fearing you wouldn't accept it and would rebel, I decided to let nature take its course. Otherwise, why do you think the flying vessel picked you up and then went on to pick up Gongsun Dong?"

Li ChuChu was startled by her Great-Grandfather's words, but seeing how genuinely willing he seemed to facilitate the union between her and Gongsun Dong, a genuine hope began to surface in her heart. The only thing that worried her slightly was that his background seemed truly mysterious, making him inscrutable to her. But one thing she was certain of: this Gongsun Dong, regardless of his origins or goals, would never harm her. Otherwise, she would have already been silenced by him earlier. Clearly, he held a strong positive feeling toward her, but was unable to act on it due to some special reason. If he could truly become her companion on the path of cultivation, she believed she would understand him eventually.

For a cultivator, encountering a truly suitable and desired partner in this lifetime is incredibly difficult. Furthermore, Li ChuChu’s personality was outwardly gentle but inwardly firm, often leading her to cling stubbornly to her convictions. For things or people she set her mind on, she would often pursue them relentlessly. Hearing her Great-Grandfather’s encouragement, she finally cast aside her embarrassment and nodded firmly.

Lei Dong frowned, hesitating. His indecision wasn't about whether to actually become someone's live-in son-in-law; rather, he was debating whether to play along with the deception. Lei Dong had always considered himself ruthless and unscrupulous in his methods. But at this moment, he truly couldn't bring himself to be entirely without regard for consequences.

If he played along, he had a very high chance of obtaining the Divine Transformation Puppet Repair Art he desired with little risk, but it would undoubtedly ruin Li ChuChu’s entire life. If she were a stranger, it wouldn't matter. But Li ChuChu treated him with genuine sincerity, and she was an exceptionally outstanding girl. To say Lei Dong felt not an ounce of affection for her would be a bald-faced lie. However, Lei Dong was unwilling, and unable, to take that route. At the very least, Lei Dong held her in high regard. In her, Lei Dong could see a shadow of his wife, Ding Wanyan.

But if Lei Dong refused, he feared not only being relegated to the cold palace but also being targeted and monitored by the enraged golden puppet. In that case, the chance of obtaining what he wanted would become extremely slim. Moreover, based on previous deductions with the artifact spirit, there was a high probability that the Divine Transformation Puppet Art was personally overseen by Elder Li, who had transformed into the puppet. Reaching him again in this lifetime would be impossible.

"Boy, don't think that just because you marry into my family, I will impose many restrictions on your actions. As long as you have the ability to keep ChuChu from being angry with you, or if your future strength far surpasses ChuChu's, even if you take many concubines, I won't utter a single word." This Elder Li seemed extremely optimistic about Lei Dong's disguised persona, Gongsun Dong, seeing a glimpse of his own youthful spirit. He sincerely hoped the young man would marry into the family, even offering such lenient terms.

Li ChuChu paused slightly, but she did not speak. The preceding exchange was purely for amusement and distraction. It didn't mean she was inherently a jealous person. Moreover, the longer he pondered, the more Li ChuChu felt a sense of foreboding about today’s events.

But Lei Dong remained unmoved. After pondering for the time it took half an incense stick to burn, he bowed deeply to Elder Li and stated solemnly, "This junior thanks the Senior for thinking so highly of me, but I have extenuating circumstances and cannot marry into your esteemed family."

What? Elder Li was somewhat stunned. This response was wildly beyond his expectations. His gaze immediately turned icy, "Hmph, boy, with your experience, you should understand the consequences of refusing this matter. Furthermore, you and ChuChu already..." The puppet paused, "Boy, I hope you consider carefully before answering."

Li ChuChu's face also turned pale with anxiety. Earlier, he was willing to risk great danger rather than silence her, so he clearly wouldn't be so heartless toward her. Yet, under such excellent conditions, he actually, he actually refused. Could it be that he truly couldn't let go of his deceased wife?

"Sigh~" Lei Dong let out a deep, long sigh, then continued, "This junior has considered very clearly." After a pause, he turned and bowed deeply to Li ChuChu: "Miss ChuChu, I only feel guilt, because, this Lei has absolutely no desire, nor the heart, to deceive you."

Lei? Elder Li, after all, was an ancient monster who had lived seven or eight hundred years, and his reaction was swift. A golden light flashed in his eyes, and just as a bad thought began to surface, the young man suddenly extended a hand and placed it around Li ChuChu's neck, turning to sneer coldly, "Elder Li, Senior. If you dare to make the slightest move, this Lei can guarantee that Miss ChuChu will be utterly annihilated, dying without any pain whatsoever." The look in his eyes was one of absolute resolve.

"You..." The golden puppet immediately halted his action, his eyes fixed on Lei Dong with extreme apprehension: "It's you... You are the thief who trespassed into the Scripture Repository earlier?"

Now that his true identity was exposed, Lei Dong no longer concealed anything, saying calmly and composedly, "Correct, it is indeed this humble one. It is just that this Lei did not anticipate Senior appearing so abruptly."

"Gongsun Dong, you..." Li ChuChu’s face lost all color, her eyes filled with pain, "Why, why are you doing this?"

"Miss ChuChu, my name is Lei Dong." Lei Dong’s gaze sharpened to its utmost, displaying a look of desperate resolution, "I feel ashamed and deeply distressed by this action. But this Lei must do this. You may consider this Lei a despicable and shameless person."

...